China is growing cotton ... on the dark side of the moon!

An image of the sprouting cotton on the moon.
Image:
via Twitter/@PDChina

Cotton seeds taken to the moon by China's Chang'e 4 mission have started to sprout.

The BBC reported that after being the first to launch a mission to land and explore on the far side of the moon, China also debuted the first biological matter to grow on the moon.

Chang'e 4's mission to the moon landed on January 3. It aims to accomplish a variety of tasks, including the first lunar low-frequency radio astronomy experiment and exploring whether there is water on the moon's poles, reported CNN.

China's People's Daily shared an image on Twitter of the sprouting cotton from the far side of the moon.

First in human history: A cotton seed brought to the moon by China's Chang'e 4 probe has sprouted, the latest test photo has shown, marking the completion of humankind's first biological experiment on the moon pic.twitter.com/CSSbgEoZmC

According to CNBC, Professor Lui Hanlong of Chongqing University, who is in charge of the research, said rape and potato seeds had also germinated on the moon but the cotton seeds were the first to sprout.